More than one in three child car seats checked in Norfolk so far this summer were incorrectly fitted, watchdogs found.

They have uncovered 335 faults so far, 314 of which were able to be fixed on the spot. The 38pc fault rate is slightly higher than last year.

Iain Temperton, road safety officer, said: “It usually only takes one minute to check a seat and not much longer to fix any problems we find.

“We find all sorts of errors from incorrect fixing to the wrong type of seat being used for the size of the child.

“It can be a complicated subject, so why not take five minutes out of your day and let us provide advice and guidance to keep your most precious cargo safe?”

Margaret Dewsbury, chair of the council’s communities committee, said: “It’s good to see the road safety team, supported by Norfolk Fire and Rescue, actively going out and sharing their expertise on child car seat fitting within the community.

“Simple fitting errors can be easily remedied but badly fitted seats can have devastating results and now thanks to the dedication of the crew hundreds of parents and carers can be reassured that their child seats are now correctly fitted.

“I would encourage any parent to get their child car seats checked, if they are unable to attend the roadshow but have concerns about their car seats they can also arrange an appointment directly with the road safety team.”

Child car seats are a legal requirement in the UK and make children far less likely to be seriously hurt in a crash, but they must be correctly fitted and adjusted to offer maximum protection.

Checks are available tomorrow at King’s Lynn Sainsbury’s, at Tesco in Fakenham on Wednesday and at Tesco in Swaffham on Friday. Next week, they will be offered at Tesco in Sprowston on Tuesday and Norwich’s Hall Road Asda on Wednesday.